Jonathan Gifford'I see no ships': Horatio Nelson turns a blind eye Published on June 25th, 2012 | by Jonathan Gifford 7 April 2nd, 1801. ‘I see no ships’: Horatio Nelson turns a blind eye at the Battle of Copenhagen Horatio Nelson, who would become Admiral Lord Viscount Nelson as he was successively promoted and honoured by the Royal Navy and a grateful British nation, was a consummate leader of men. A brilliant strategist, politically well-informed and adept, he was always likely to achieve a senior role in the navy. What set Nelson apart, however, was his determination to lead from the front. His intelligent and sympathetic management of his fellow officers led to the notion of the ‘band of brothers’, a team of highly-motivated officers who had been schooled in Nelson’s strategic thinking and tactical expertise, but who were given complete freedom of action in the heat of battle. But it was Nelson’s astonishing bravery and his determination to engage the enemy that earned him the adulation of his men.

‘Thank God, sir, you are safe’ Nelson fighting the Spanish at CAdiz 1797 In one desperate skirmish against the Spanish at Cadiz, which led to hand-to-hand fighting on small boats, Nelson’s life was saved by his coxswain, John Sykes, who used his bare arm to parry a sword blow aimed at Nelson’s head. ‘Thank God, sir, you are safe’, said the badly wounded Sykes. Nelson was determined to succeed. Elements of vanity and a burning desire for recognition seem to have fuelled his ambition. He was prepared to ignore orders – or, at least, to choose to interpret orders in a way that would allow him to cover himself in glory without, hopefully, facing a court-martial. Ship-to-ship signalling by flags allowed for a degree of ambiguity in the interpretation of signalled orders and in the smoke of battle, flags were often impossible to see.

A cavalier approach to orders The best-known example of Nelson’s apparently cavalier approach to orders is, of course, the Battle of Copenhagen, at which Nelson put his telescope to his blind eye and announced that he could not see the signal calling on him to end the action and retreat (Nelson had lost the sight of one eye during an shore attack on Cadiz, when a cannonball impact sprayed sand and pebbles into his face). Britain, at the time, was at war with Napoleonic France and the Royal Navy was attempting to prevent neutral ships from trading with the French Republic. Ships were intercepted and their cargoes seized. Denmark and Sweden had been persuaded by Russia to join a ‘League of Armed Neutrality’ which would defy this embargo. The League’s hostility to Britain threatened supplies of timber from Scandinavia, essential for the maintenance of the navy’s fleet of wooden ships. Britain launched a naval attack on Denmark. An honourable route out The Danish fleet was drawn up in a formidable defensive position off the city of Copenhagen, situated on an island between the mainland of Denmark and Sweden that can only be approached by sea through a narrow and treacherous channel.

Nelson’s fleet fought its way doggedly up the straights, each British ship anchoring within canon-shot of its Danish counterpart to begin a punishing exchange of broadsides. Several British ships ran aground in the uncharted shallows. After three and a half hours of firing, the British Admiral, Sir Hyde Parker, offered Nelson an honourable route out of this bloody action. Parker is normally cast as the villain of the piece for foolishly recalling Nelson on the brink of victory, but his motives were good: he feared that Nelson’s attack had stalled and that Nelson would be unable to retreat without an order to do so. He explicitly hoped that Nelson would ignore the order if able to do so. ‘I really do not see the signal’ In fact, a retreat would not only have wasted the initiative, but Nelson’s ships would have been forced to retreat across the line of fire from a still-active section of the Danish defences. Nelson turned to his flag-captain and said, ‘ Foley, you know that I have lost an eye, and have a right to be blind sometimes ’.

Then he did raise his telescope to his blind eye and said, “I really do not see the signal.” Nelson went on to win the battle and to negotiate an armistice, followed by a peace agreement. The phrase ‘to turn a blind eye’ had entered the English language. Admiral Parker was deemed by the Admiralty to have shown a lack of vigour in the overall campaign and was recalled; Vice-Admiral Nelson took over his command. Horatio Nelson’s leadership features in History Lessons , ‘Leading from the Front’ Tags: Battle of Copenhagen , Horatio Nelson , leadership About the Author Jonathan Gifford I write and blog about the human aspects of business and leadership, with an interest in the lessons that we can learn from history, including recent history. Please do leave a comment if anything occurs. You can sign up for my occasional newsletter, highlighting some recent blogs. I live in Oxfordshire, England. Related Posts Admiral Lord Nelson and the Battle of Trafalgar By Ben Johnson | Comments In 1758 a small sickly baby boy was born, son of the Rector of Burnham Thorpe in Norfolk.

No one could have envisaged that this child would, in his lifetime, become one of England's greatest heroes. Sent to sea aged 12, he soon found that although he loved the ships and the sea, he would suffer from terrible seasickness all his life. Nelson was a small man, just 5ft 4in tall, of slight build and with a weak constitution. He was frequently very ill with recurrent bouts of malaria and dysentery, relics of his time in the tropics, Madras, Calcutta and Ceylon. In 1780 he was again very ill, this time with scurvy and his life, and the lives of his shipboard companions, hung in the balance. But once again this small, apparently frail man survived! In spite of his frail health, in 1784 he was given the command of the Boreas and was on duty in the West Indies when he met and married Frances Nisbet, a widow. After an idle period at home in Norfolk, he was recalled and given the command of the Agamemnon in 1793.

From 1793 until his death at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805 he was involved in battle after battle. He suffered serious injury during these years, losing the sight in his right eye at the Battle of Calvi in Corsica and his right arm at Santa Cruz in Tenerife. Nelson was a brilliant tactician and was often able to surprise his enemies by audacious tactics. At the Battle of the Nile in 1798 his daring and courage completely outwitted the French when he sailed his ships between the shore and the French Fleet. The French guns that faced the shore were not ready for action, as it was believed that Nelson could not possibly attack from that position! Nelson was created Baron Nelson of the Nile by a grateful country after this stunning victory. While Nelson was in Naples in 1793 he met the lady who was to become the great love of his life, Emma, Lady Hamilton . She was a great beauty with a voluptuous figure and a rather 'shady' past. Eventually in 1801 Nelson abandoned his wife and lived with his 'dearest Emma'.

A daughter was born in 1801 and christened Horatia, a child whom Nelson doted on, though she was never aware who her mother was. 1801 was also the year in which Nelson destroyed the Danish Navy at the Battle of Copenhagen. During the battle he was sent a signal to break off action by the Admiral Sir Hyde Parker. Nelson reputedly put his telescope to his blind eye and said to his Flag Lieutenant, "You know Foley I have only one eye. I have a right to be blind sometimes. I really do not see the signal". Nelson had great courage and was a brave man as he endured intense pain when his arm was amputated without an anaesthetic. The surgeon wrote in his diary, "Nelson bore the pain without complaint, but was given opium afterwards". After the operation Nelson suggested that the surgeon should heat his knives first, as the cold knives were more painful! War broke out again with France in 180, and Nelson was for many months on watch in the Mediterranean. On October 20th 1805, the French and Spanish fleets put to sea and off the southern coast of Spain the Battle of Trafalgar took place.

This was to be Nelson's last and most famous victory. Before the battle, Nelson sent his famous signal to the Fleet, "England expects that every man will do his duty". It was at the height of the battle that Nelson was shot as he paced the deck of his ship Victory. He was easily recognisable by the marksmen on the French ships as he was wearing his full dress uniform and all his medals, and seemed impervious to the danger he was in. He died shortly after he was taken below decks and his body was taken ashore at Rosia Bay in Gibraltar . His body was sent back to England in a barrel full of brandy which acted as a preservative during the long journey home. The injured from the battle were cared for and those who did not survive were buried in the Trafalgar Cemetery, Gibraltar; their graves remain carefully tended to this day. Nelson's funeral in London was a tremendous occasion, the streets lined with weeping people. The funeral procession was so long that the Scots Greys who led the procession reached the doors of St. Paul's Cathedral before the mourners at the rear had left the Admiralty. He was buried in the crypt of St. Paul's.

In London's Trafalgar Square can be seen the country's memorial to the most inspiring leader the British Navy ever had. Nelson's column, erected in 1840, stands 170ft high and is crowned with a statue of Nelson on the top. Lord Nelson (1758-1805) Admiral Lord Nelson Biography I am happy that you are using this web site and hope that you found it useful. Unfortunately, the cost of making this material freely available is increasing, so if you have found the site useful and would like to contribute towards its continuation, I would greatly appreciate it. Click the button to go to Paypal and make a donation. Admiral Lord Nelson Horatio Nelson was born on 29 September 1758 at Burnham Thorpe in Norfolk. He was the sixth of eleven children born to the Rev. Edmund Nelson and his wife, Catherine. The Nelsons were distant relatives of Lord Walpole: Horatio, 2nd Lord Walpole of Wolterton (Horatio Nelson's godfather) was Sir Robert's Walpole 's nephew and Sir Robert's sister Mary was grandmother of Catherine, Nelson's mother.

[1] Nelson's uncle, Captain Maurice Suckling was to become comptroller of the British Navy and agreed to take Horatio Nelson to sea. Nelson joined the navy in 1770. His first years in the navy were marked by experience gained in the Thames, on a voyage to the West Indies and an expedition to the Arctic in 1773. He also served in the East Indies; his first naval action was in the Indian Ocean. Soon after he contracted malaria and was invalided home. In 1777 Nelson was made a lieutenant and sailed for Jamaica on the Lowestoft. The West Indies was the most active theatre in the war against the American colonies . In 1779 Nelson was promoted to captain, at the age of 20. He was given command of a frigate, the Hinchingbrook, and took part in operations against Spanish settlements in Nicaragua, which became targets once Spain joined France in alliance with the American Revolutionaries. The attack on San Juan was militarily successful but ultimately disastrous when the British force was almost wiped out by yellow fever.

In 1781 Nelson commissioned the Albemarle and joined Hood's squadron in America; in 1783, after the end of the American War of Independence, Nelson returned to England by way of France. On his return to London in 1784 he was appointed to command a frigate, the Boreas, bound for the West Indies to enforce the Navigation Act. Nelson implemented the law against American ships and made enemies not only among merchants and ship owners but also among the resident British authorities who had failed to enforce the law. Nelson found command both difficult and lonely. He visited Nevis in March 1785 and met Frances Nisbet , a widow, and her five year old son, Josiah. In March 1787 the couple were married at Nevis. When he returned England, Nelson found himself on half pay and remained unemployed for five years. He knew that the Admiralty was prejudiced against him, probably for his strict enforcement of the Navigation Acts. However, with the outbreak of the French Wars , he was given command of the 64-gun Agamemnon. Nelson was sent to defend Toulon against the French and went to Naples to collect reinforcements.

It was here that Nelson first met Emma Hamilton, wife of the British Ambassador. When Toulon fell Lord Hood moved his base to Corsica, where Nelson and his ship's company went ashore to assist in the capture of Bastia and Calvi. A French shot threw debris into Nelson's face, resulting in him losing his right eye. At the end of 1794, Hood was replaced by Admiral William Hotham who subsequently was replaced by Sir John Jervis, a very experienced seaman. Jervis' arrival coincided with French land successes so that the British were forced to abandon their Mediterranean bases. Nelson found himself sailing through a Spanish fleet of 27 ships while making for a rendezvous with Jervis off Cape St. Vincent. The Battle of Cape St. Vincent won an earldom for Jervis, who became Lord St. Vincent and Nelson was knighted. He was also promoted by seniority to Rear Admiral. His first action in command of a major independent force was an assault on Tenerife where he lost his right arm. In the spring of 1798 Nelson was fit enough to rejoin Lord St.

Vincent, who assigned him to watch a French fleet waiting to embark an expeditionary force. The result was the Battle of the Nile . Following the battle, Nelson put in for repairs at Naples where he was given a hero's welcome by Lady Hamilton who became his mistress. Nelson was elevated to the peerage as Baron Nelson of the Nile and was awarded a pension of £10,000 a year. The King of Naples gave Nelson the title of Duke of Bronte (in Sicily). Nelson resigned his command and returned to England in 1800 with the Hamiltons. Emma was pregnant by Nelson when he was appointed second in command to Admiral Sir Hyde Parker, who was to command an expedition to the Baltic. Shortly before sailing, Nelson heard that Emma had given birth to a daughter, Horatia. Nelson separated from his wife. Parker's fleet sailed for Copenhagen early in 1801. Nelson led his squadron into action on 2 April. The Danes resisted and Parker, fearing that Nelson was suffering unacceptable losses, hoisted the signal to disengage. Nelson disregarded it.

An hour later, the Danish ships were destroyed, their losses amounting to 6,000 dead and wounded, six times heavier than those of the British. It was at the Battle of Copenhagen that Nelson held his telescope to his blind eye, saying, "I see no ships" before he disobeyed order. Parker was succeeded by Nelson as commander in chief. The Admiralty made maximum use of Nelson's popularity by giving him a home command. At once he planned an ambitious attack on the naval base of Boulogne in order to prevent a possible French invasion. He did not take part and the operation was a failure. A second attempt was abandoned because of peace negotiations with France, and in March 1802 the Peace of Amiens was signed. Emma Hamilton had bought Merton Place, an country house near London. Her husband appeared reconciled to his lot but died in 1803 with his wife and her lover at his side. In May 1803 Nelson was given command in the Mediterranean. His flagship was the Victory. Once again he blockaded Toulon with the aim of preventing a rendezvous between the French and Spanish ships. A combined force could enable Bonaparte to invade England.

In early 1805, Napoleon ordered the fleets to converge for this purpose. The result was the Battle of Trafalgar . As the opposing fleets closed, Nelson made his signal, "England expects that every man will do his duty." The Battle of Trafalgar raged around the Victory, and a French sniper shot Nelson through the shoulder and chest. It was soon clear that he was dying. When told that 15 enemy ships had been taken, he replied, "That is well, but I had bargained for 20." Thomas Hardy, his flag captain, kissed his forehead in farewell and Nelson spoke his last words, "Now I am satisfied. Thank God, I have done my duty." Nelson was given a state funeral in St. Paul's Cathedral. Emma Hamilton and his daughter were ignored. Emma died in Calais nine years later, almost destitute. [1] I am indebted to Martin Stiles for this information.

( back ) Rotherham and the Battle of Trafalgar Horatio Nelson and the Battle of Trafalgar - British Heritage Travel Manage Subscription You are at: Home » Anglo-file »Horatio Nelson and the Battle of Trafalgar This 1805 victory at sea against the Franco-Spanish fleet immortalized Lord Nelson and changed the course of world history. Horatio Nelson and the Battle of Trafalgar Anglo-file , Empire , Famous British Men , Horatio Nelson , Military Leaders Nelson’s Column and Trafalgar Square are two of Britain’s iconic landmarks. In 2005, which celebrates the 200th anniversary of Lord Nelson’s death at Trafalgar, it is appropriate to reappraise the achievements of a national hero whose twice life-size statue stands upon a 170-foot pedestal in the center of London. In portraiture, caricature and fancy dress, Nelson is instantly recognizable as the semi-blinded, one-armed diminutive naval officer whose derring-do destroyed French and Spanish fleets, and who was involved in an interesting ménage à trois with Lady Emma Hamilton.

Incidentally, he never wore an eye patch and it is questionable that he saved Britain from invasion by Napoleon. He did, however, say, ‘Kiss me, Hardy,’ and Captain Thomas Hardy did kiss him, twice. Above all, however, Nelson was an outstanding naval tactician. We know little of Nelson’s childhood. Horatio Nelson was born on September 29, 1758, in Burnham Thorpe, Norfolk, where his father, Edmund Nelson, was rector. His mother, Catherine Suckling, who died when Horatio was 9, was related to Robert Walpole, Britain’s first prime minister. This early biographical brevity lacks insight into his character’s formation. Nelson’s sense of devotion to God, country and duty possibly originated from his father’s sermons, which probably had a contemporary nationalistic tone. Nelson is revered as a paragon of manly virtues: boldness, ruthlessness, feckless risk taking, impudence and audacity. All those traits appear to have been nascent in Nelson when he joined the navy at the age of 12 in 1771.

His naval career was simply a theater for their expression and refinement as he strived for glory. Nelson, on his own initiative, requested his father’s assistance to enlist into the Royal Navy. This was achieved through two uncles, Maurice and William Suckling, who had risen to influential levels in the naval hierarchy. Initially, Captain Maurice Suckling ensured young Nelson’s assignments were appropriate to obtaining seafaring skills and promotions. There is a whiff of nepotism in Nelson’s early promotions as he learned the ropes of sailing, but the 18th-century navy worked more on patronage than merit.For 21 years Nelson was based in the North American or West Indian stations. This was a frustrating period for him as there were few opportunities for action; what little action there was left him wanting more. Nonetheless it was an instructive period. Through the auspices of Admirals Lord Hood and Sir John Jervis, Nelson learned that a well-disciplined ship was not a vessel ruled by the cat-o’-nine-tails but one where every man knew, and flawlessly executed, his duty.

Nelson also came to understand that Britain’s sovereignty was dependent upon sustaining economic superiority over France and Spain; any affront to this was unpatriotic and had to be stopped. Nelson returned to London in 1792 with clear ideas of naval leadership and a wife and stepson, but he lamented not having had the opportunity to participate in a major naval battle. He told friends in letters that it was his ambition to lead a line of battleships into glorious action and die a hero. The danger Nelson craved was soon to come. In 1793 the uneasy peace with France ended. Nelson was placed in command of HMS Agamemnon and sent to serve under Admiral Jervis in the Mediterranean. Over the next five years he repeatedly distinguished himself with displays of bravery, coolness and fine judgment. In this period he was blinded in the right eye at Corsica in the Battle of Calvi. Also in this time, during an overzealous assault on Santa Cruz, Canary Islands, he received the wound that resulted in his arm being amputated. The battle-scarred Nelson came fully to the attention of the nation after the Battle of Cape St. Vincent.

The combined desire to cause mayhem in the French fleet and his innate craving for glory impelled Nelson to courageously board and capture two enemy ships. Nelson enjoyed public admiration for his combative achievements, admiration that he flamed with letters to influential newspapers. The bestowal of a pension, knighthood and promotion to rear admiral further massaged his insatiable ego. More glory shortly followed. Nelson was ordered to hunt and destroy the French Mediterranean fleet. Napoleon’s strategy was to invade Egypt and cut Britain’s vital commercial route to India, so an economically weakened Britain would not threaten his European ambitions. With a fleet of 14 ships, Nelson located the French fleet at anchor in Aboukir Bay, near Alexandria, on August 1, 1798. The Battle of the Nile was about to commence. Though it was late in the day, Nelson, seeking glory and a decisive victory, attacked. His strategy was audacious and, as he was victorious, is considered brilliant. Traditionally, naval battles were conducted with opposing fleets forming parallel lines and pummeling each other until, through attrition, one side was clearly defeated.

Pierre Charles de Villeneuve, the French rear admiral, anchored his ships against shallow water believing the British ships would be unable to sail there, forcing them to come alongside his powerfully armed and prepared deepwater flank. His confidence was such that he did not prepare his shallow-water flank’s defenses. Nelson, a ruthless predator, crossed the enemy’s poorly armed prows and sterns, into the shallow water and bombarded the French ships’ unprotected flank. It worked to devastating effect: Nelson annihilated the French fleet. News of Nelson’s victory was rapturously received in London. The one-eyed, one-armed rear admiral became the idol of England. Nelson thoroughly enjoyed the adulation, the conferral of a barony and promotion to vice admiral. Unfortunately for Nelson, his Nile victory was so complete that it resulted in a frustrating few years of naval inactivity. Those years were passed in Naples, where his affair with Lady Hamilton, wife of the British ambassador there, flourished and with whom he openly returned to London in November 1800. He deserted his wife a year later. A vicious press scandalized the adultery, which caused some decline in his popularity.

The vitriol abated in 1801 when Nelson, who had been appointed Vice Admiral of the Blue on January 1, again sailed into battle, this time against the Danes. At the Battle of Copenhagen Nelson turned a potential disaster into victory. His superior, Admiral Hyde Parker–whom Nelson held in low esteem–signaled the British fleet to retreat. Nelson, convinced he could win, is reputed to have put his telescope to his blind eye and said, ‘I really do not see the signal.’ The story goes that from this act, the expression ‘turning a blind eye’ entered the English language. What was of consequence was Nelson’s victory and the reward of promotion to viscount. Then, for nearly two years, Lord Nelson languished in a world devoid of action at sea. By 1803 Napoleon was redrawing the European political chessboard and once more menacing Britain’s sovereignty. Nelson, now 45, was recalled from semi-retirement to take command of the British Mediterranean fleet on board HMS Victory, which, in an ironic subtext of history, had been commissioned the year of his birth.

In 1805, Spain was allied with France; Napoleon was amassing thousands of troops in the French channel ports awaiting the arrival of the combined Franco-Spanish fleet to form an invasion flotilla. A successful invasion depended upon drawing off the protective British fleet. As a ruse, the Franco-Spanish fleet headed for the Caribbean, pursued by Nelson. The enemy fleet, ahead of Nelson, was prevented from reaching the channel ports and diverted to Cadiz, Spain. Viscount Nelson was again the hero of the hour because he had prevented the French from seizing Britain’s Caribbean possessions. Despite Napoleon abandoning his invasion of Britain, his fleet was still a substantial menace. The Franco-Spanish fleet left Cadiz on October 19, 1805. By 1 a.m. on the 20th Nelson knew its precise location, but delayed engagement because he wanted the ships to be farther from their bolt-hole. During the night, Nelson’s captains reflected on his last memorandum, known as the Nelson Touch, which finished, ‘In case signals can neither be seen or perfectly understood, no captain can do very wrong if he places his ship alongside that of an enemy.’ This was tactical excellence.

All his captains, appointed by him on merit and in his confidence, knew the battle plan, but Admiral Nelson was allowing for unforeseen contingencies. The viscount’s plan was simple and bold. The British fleet would divide into two lines and cut the Franco-Spanish fleet in three; the van would be isolated from the action and Nelson’s 27 ships would attack the mid and rear lines–brilliant. Except there would be a period, perhaps 20 minutes, when the British ships would be unable to return fire. Nelson, confident as ever in his plan, courageously led the attack. In the final approach on the enemy fleet, Lord Nelson made the signal that is now synonymous with his name: ‘England expects that every man will do his duty.’ Nelson was about to do just that. At approximately 12:35, HMS Victory came under fire and was unable to return fire until 1. At 1:15 Nelson was shot by a sniper from the rigging of Redoubtable.

He remarked to Hardy, Victory‘s captain, ‘They have done for me at last, my backbone is shot through.’ Admiral Nelson was carried to the orlop deck where, to cacophonous roars, the shuddering of cannon recoils and the reek of smoke, cordite and fear, he was hopelessly nursed by surgeon William Beatty. At 3:30 Hardy told Nelson they had achieved a glorious victory. Nelson begged Hardy to kiss him, which Hardy did on the cheek and the forehead. Horatio Nelson died with the closing words, ‘Thank God I have done my duty,’ having achieved his primary ambition: a glorious death in battle. Nelson’s death in victory compounded his heroic status. His elevation to supreme hero, almost a deity, was confirmed as his state funeral on January 9, 1806, was solemnly witnessed by tens of thousands. Lord Nelson’s death was immediately commemorated in monument, in street and building name and in contemporary song, art and poetry. Nelson would have approved of Lord Byron’s accolade describing him as ‘Britannia’s God of War.’ Nelson’s legacy goes beyond art and place names.

His actions at Trafalgar influenced global military and political affairs for more than a century. Nelson’s victory established the British navy as the most powerful in the world, such that Britannia ruled the waves unchallenged for more than 100 years. Victory at Trafalgar also gave the nation of shopkeepers the confidence and arrogance to believe that their imperial ambitions were correct. It was the foundation and impulse for Britain’s colonial and industrial growth into a world-dominating power. This is epitomized in ‘Rule Britannia,’ a powerfully rendered song reflecting Britain’s self-confidence, a song that Britons still passionately sing. Trafalgar also had a broader significance in world history. Nelson’s rout of the Franco-Spanish fleet, whose losses included 18 ships, 6,000 killed or wounded, and over 20,000 taken prisoner, so stung Napoleon that he never initiated another naval campaign. Admiral Nelson’s losses were zero ships and approximately 1,700 killed or wounded. For this, Nelson is credited with saving Britain from a Napoleonic invasion even though Napoleon’s geopolitical ambitions had changed prior to Trafalgar.

For the Spanish, Trafalgar proved catastrophic. Spain was a hemorrhaging nation with domestic power struggles and a faltering economy. Defeat at Trafalgar exacerbated those problems. Without its fleet, Spain was cut off from its Central and South American colonies and their riches. Spain was also unable to send military reinforcements to sustain its hegemony in the Americas. Many of those colonies, today’s sovereign Latin American nations, can trace their independence movements back to Spain’s crushing defeat at Trafalgar. In the bicentennial year of Nelson’s death, visitors to Trafalgar Square may look up to Horatio Nelson in a renewed light. Soaring above them is a little man whose innate predatory instincts for victory and glory shaped much of their heritage; without his victories at Cape St. Vincent, the Nile, Copenhagen and Trafalgar, today’s geopolitical map would be very different. 'Turn a blind eye' - the meaning and origin of this phrase Turn a blind eye To knowingly refuse to acknowledge something which you know to be real. Origin Admiral Horatio Nelson is supposed to have said this when wilfully disobeying a signal to withdraw during a naval engagement.

Tales of that sort, especially when they are about national heroes like Nelson, tend to be exaggerated or entirely fictitious. That doesn't appear to be the case here though and there's very good evidence to show that Nelson was indeed the source of this phrase. In the naval battle of Copenhagen in 1801 Nelson lead the attack of the British fleet against a joint Danish/Norwegian enemy. The British fleet of the day was commanded by Admiral Sir Hyde Parker. The two men disagreed over tactics and at one point Hyde Parker sent a signal (by the use of flags) for Nelson to disengage. Nelson was convinced he could win if he persisted and that's when he 'turned a blind eye'. In their biography Life of Nelson, published just eight years later, Clarke and M'Arthur printed what they claimed to be a Nelson's actual words at the time: [Putting the glass to his blind eye] "You know, Foley, I have only one eye - and I have a right to be blind sometimes...

I really do not see the signal." The first recorded use of the phrase in the form we normally use it today is in More letters from Martha Wilmot: impressions of Vienna, 1819-1829. These were reprinted in 1935 and this quotation is recorded as being sent by Ms. Wilmot in 1823: "turn a blind eye and a deaf ear every now and then, and we get on marvellously well." The manner of use of the phrase in that quotation suggests that it was well understood at the time. 10 Common Sayings With Historical Origins - History Lists History Lists April 23, 2013 By Evan Andrews Horatio Nelson 10 Common Sayings With Historical Origins Author 10 Common Sayings With Historical Origins URL Google Although you might not know it, you probably quote history on a daily basis. The English language is filled with idioms, sayings and bits of slang that are derived from historical events and legends. While the connections are sometimes obvious, other phrases have become so commonplace that most speakers probably never stop to consider their source. Find out more about the unusual origin stories behind 10 everyday phrases.

Turn a blind eye The phrase “turn a blind eye”—often used to refer to a willful refusal to acknowledge a particular reality—dates back to a legendary chapter in the career of the British naval hero Horatio Nelson. During 1801’s Battle of Copenhagen, Nelson’s ships were pitted against a large Danish-Norwegian fleet. When his more conservative superior officer flagged for him to withdraw, the one-eyed Nelson supposedly brought his telescope to his bad eye and blithely proclaimed, “I really do not see the signal.” He went on to score a decisive victory. Some historians have since dismissed Nelson’s famous quip as merely a battlefield myth, but the phrase “turn a blind eye” persists to this day. White elephant White elephants were once considered highly sacred creatures in Thailand—the animal even graced the national flag until 1917—but they were also wielded as a subtle form of punishment. According to legend, if an underling or rival angered a Siamese king, the royal might present the unfortunate man with the gift of a white elephant. While ostensibly a reward, the creatures were tremendously expensive to feed and house, and caring for one often drove the recipient into financial ruin.

Whether any specific rulers actually bestowed such a passive-aggressive gift is uncertain, but the term has since come to refer to any burdensome possession—pachyderm or otherwise. Crocodile tears Modern English speakers use the phrase “crocodile tears” to describe a display of superficial or false sorrow, but the saying actually derives from a medieval belief that crocodiles shed tears of sadness while they killed and consumed their prey. The myth dates back as far as the 14th century and comes from a book called “The Travels of Sir John Mandeville.” Wildly popular upon its release, the tome recounts a brave knight’s adventures during his supposed travels through Asia. Among its many fabrications, the book includes a description of crocodiles that notes, “These serpents sley men, and eate them weeping, and they have no tongue.” While factually inaccurate, Mandeville’s account of weeping reptiles later found its way into the works of Shakespeare, and “crocodile tears” became an idiom as early as the 16th century.

Diehard While it typically refers to someone with a strong dedication to a particular set of beliefs, the term “diehard” originally had a series of much more literal meanings. In its earliest incarnation in the 1700s, the expression described condemned men who struggled the longest when they were executed by hanging. The phrase later became even more popular after 1811’s Battle of Albuera during the Napoleonic Wars. In the midst of the fight, a wounded British officer named William Inglis supposedly urged his unit forward by bellowing “Stand your ground and die hard … make the enemy pay dear for each of us!” Inglis’ 57th Regiment suffered 75 percent casualties during the battle, and went on to earn the nickname “the Die Hards.” Resting on laurels The idea of resting on your laurels dates back to leaders and athletic stars of ancient Greece. In Hellenic times, laurel leaves were closely tied to Apollo, the god of music, prophecy and poetry. Apollo was usually depicted with a crown of laurel leaves, and the plant eventually became a symbol of status and achievement.

Victorious athletes at the ancient Pythian Games received wreaths made of laurel branches, and the Romans later adopted the practice and presented wreaths to generals who won important battles. Venerable Greeks and Romans, or “laureates,” were thus able to “rest on their laurels” by basking in the glory of past achievements. Only later did the phrase take on a negative connotation, and since the 1800s it has been used for those who are overly satisfied with past triumphs. Read the riot act These days, angry parents might threaten to “read the riot act” to their unruly children. But in 18th-century England, the Riot Act was a very real document, and it was often recited aloud to angry mobs. Instituted in 1715, the Riot Act gave the British government the authority to label any group of more than 12 people a threat to the peace. In these circumstances, a public official would read a small portion of the Riot Act and order the people to “disperse themselves, and peaceably depart to their habitations.” Anyone that remained after one hour was subject to arrest or removal by force.

The law was later put to the test in 1819 during the infamous Peterloo Massacre, in which a cavalry unit attacked a large group of protestors after they appeared to ignore a reading of the Riot Act. Paint the town red The phrase “paint the town red” most likely owes its origin to one legendary night of drunkenness. In 1837, the Marquis of Waterford—a known lush and mischief maker—led a group of friends on a night of drinking through the English town of Melton Mowbray. The bender culminated in vandalism after Waterford and his fellow revelers knocked over flowerpots, pulled knockers off of doors and broke the windows of some of the town’s buildings. To top it all off, the mob literally painted a tollgate, the doors of several homes and a swan statue with red paint. The marquis and his pranksters later compensated Melton for the damages, but their drunken escapade is likely the reason that “paint the town red” became shorthand for a wild night out. Still yet another theory suggests the phrase was actually born out of the brothels of the American West, and referred to men behaving as though their whole town were a red-light district.

Running amok “Running amok” is commonly used to describe wild or erratic behavior, but the phrase actually began its life as a medical term. The saying was popularized in the 18th and 19th centuries, when European visitors to Malaysia learned of a peculiar mental affliction that caused otherwise normal tribesmen to go on brutal and seemingly random killing sprees. Amok—derived from the “Amuco,” a band of Javanese and Malay warriors who were known for their penchant for indiscriminate violence—was initially a source of morbid fascination for Westerners. Writing in 1772, the famed explorer Captain James Cook noted that “to run amok is to … sally forth from the house, kill the person or persons supposed to have injured the Amock, and any other person that attempts to impede his passage.” Once thought to be the result of possession by evil spirits, the phenomenon later found its way into psychiatric manuals. It remains a diagnosable mental condition to this day.

By and large Many everyday phrases are nautical in origin— “taken aback,” “loose cannon” and “high and dry” all originated at sea—but perhaps the most surprising example is the common saying “by and large.” As far back as the 16th century, the word “large” was used to mean that a ship was sailing with the wind at its back. Meanwhile, the much less desirable “by,” or “full and by,” meant the vessel was traveling into the wind. Thus, for mariners, “by and large” referred to trawling the seas in any and all directions relative to the wind. Today, sailors and landlubbers alike now use the phrase as a synonym for “all things considered” or “for the most part.” The third degree There are several tales about the origin of “the third degree,” a saying commonly used for long or arduous interrogations. One theory argues the phrase relates to the various degrees of murder in the criminal code; yet another credits it to Thomas F. Byrnes, a 19th-century New York City policeman who used the pun “Third Degree Byrnes” when describing his hardnosed questioning style.

In truth, the saying is most likely derived from the Freemasons, a centuries-old fraternal organization whose members undergo rigorous questioning and examinations before becoming “third degree” members, or “master masons.” Tags

Question: At which battle did Nelson hold his telescope to his blind eye and say "I see no signal"
Answer: Battle of Copenhagen